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The domain hosting business is funny. Most domain hosting company’s take pride in giving you massive amounts of web design space. Newcomers to the Internet get suckered into that hype all the time. Some think that the more megabytes of space they have, the better.

Well, let me tell you, space doesn’t make the sale. The content of the site makes the sale. Also, did you know that 10 MB of website space is about 750 pages? I don’t know about you but your business would have to be awfully huge to fill up 750 pages. So you don’t need a web host that offers 100 MB of space for $99 a year.

Here’s what you do need:

20 megabytes of space: This gives you about 1,500 pages. More than enough for expansion as your business grows
10 Email Accounts: These accounts will all have your URL as the extension to show people that your online business is very professional (ex: if your website is www.business-name.com, then one of your email accounts could be, webmaster@business-name.com, joe@business-name.com, etc.)

Unlimited web page editing: Some web hosts will charge you additional fees if you edit your website over a certain data transfer amount. Make sure the host you sign with either has a very high data transfer limit (like 1 Gig of data per month) or no limit at all.

Unlimited hits/traffic (data transfer): Did you know that some web hosts will hit you with additional monthly fees if your website gets too much traffic? Yes, you’ll just send you a bill one day in the mail saying that they charged your credit card an additional amount because your website received more traffic to it than was allowed. Now, I thought a website was supposed to help your online business. Not penalize you for doing well.

That’s why I say to watch out for those budget web hosting companies. They may give you a very low rate (like $99 or $149 per year), but some will hit you on the head with hidden charges to make up the difference. OUCH!

Unlimited phone and email technical support: Look for a host that will answer your email questions in 24 hours flat. They should also have a real phone number so you can call and speak to a human person to solve any technical problems you are having with your site.

Access to marketing resource information: Your web host should not just take your monthly or yearly fee and say, “Good Luck!” They should also provide access to marketing reports and information to help you be a better online marketer.

Traffic generation assistance: I’ve saved the best for last. Without traffic, your web business is dead in the water. Traffic is like oxygen, without it you die. So make sure the web host you sign with helps you generate traffic to your website. Of course, most web hosting company’s do very little to help their clients generate traffic. Most are just happy to get your monthly or yearly fee. Very shortly, I’ll tell you about a web hosting company that does help you get traffic.

As far as traffic generation is concerned, watch out for domain hosting company’s who promise to put a link on their “Special and Private Links” page back to your site to help you generate traffic. What good is that link a month later when they sign up 100 or so more clients and now your link is way at the bottom. How many people do you think will actually read that far down the page to find your link and visit your site.